The Ranger
by Elven Kitten
Summary: 1) This is my take on how Aragorn and Legolas met. (Rated PG for saftey... tell me if you think otherwise.) FINISHED!
1. Chapter 1

~*~ Chapter 1 ~*~  
  
The 20 year-old Ranger walked through the woods stealthily. He enjoyed going through new places, always wanting to explore. He had been sent out to chase a small band of orcs out of and away from Rivendell. The only reason he had been allowed to go by himself was because there were only three or four of them left. Though he'd thought it kind of boring chasing three small orcs, he went just so that he could get some time alone to explore the forest he'd heard so much about, Mirkwood. He was always getting into mischief too and so he didn't manage to get out for very long or very far by himself. This was the first time he'd been this far in this direction. He'd been to the gap of Rohan, but that was the furthest he'd gone. This was the first time he needed to come in this direction. Sighing, he looked around at his surroundings. Ever since he'd walked into Mirkwood he had paid attention to his surroundings, placing and remembering things as he went so as not to get lost on his way out. Looking back at some odd looking plant he tripped over a tree root that stuck out of the ground. He hit the tree root with a thump he automatically put his hands out in front of him and stopped his fall. Smiling, he pushed himself up and laughed quietly at his carelessness.  
  
While this was happening a figure was watching him in the trees above, the interlacing branches allowing him to move from tree to tree effortlessly. Keeping himself hidden, he watched the intruder cautiously from above. The wind rustling through the trees blew his long blonde hair about his face. The fair being balanced himself perfectly on the tree branches, walking along even some of the thinner ones, without much help from his hands. He glared down at the human on the ground, he hated humans, in fact his whole race did.  
  
The Ranger was completely unaware of the being in the trees overhead, not even his amazing hearing (on human accounts) could detect the being above him. He wasn't able to hear anyone, but for the last hour or so he had felt someone watching him, he looked around nervously, wondering why he was feeling this way if no one was watching him. He turned around and started heading back, starting to feel very uncomfortable. After the feeling didn't leave, he quickened the pace and continued doing so until he was running as fast as he could go without missing any of the things he'd seen before and taking a wrong turn.  
  
Taken off guard, the being in the trees stumbled over an odd shaped branch and fell over, stunned, he didn't think to grab the branch before he fell and hit the ground with a quiet thump. To his distress, he landed weird and in a thorn-bush. He sat there for a moment, surprised at what had happened. After a second he tried to push himself up and cried out slightly at the pain that shot up his arm like a hundred flaming needles.  
  
The Ranger stopped suddenly, the weird feeling was gone. He stood still for a moment and jumped when he heard an unexpected cry of pain. He took an uncertain step forward as if to keep going but instead he turned around and ran towards the sound of the cry, to confused to take note of his surroundings. He continued on until he felt as if he could go no further. He had been running all day and was tired out from his long orc chase. He pulled out a flask quickly and drank a bit. Putting it back away, he listened for the cry to come again, or any noise that may tell him where the hurt one was. He started listening intently. Nothing. He couldn't hear a single sound. He decided to head the way he was going slowly and hope he found him, judging the sound carefully, he walked for a couple of minutes, then stopped. From what he heard, the person should be around here. He wasn't sure if it was human or what, but he guessed it wasn't because a human couldn't go very long at all without him hearing him. He looked around the area wondering where he could be, listening carefully, he tried to hear him, but that didn't work. Walking backwards and searching the ground for footsteps, he found something, but not something he would have liked. a thorn-bush. He walked backwards right into it.  
  
"Ouch!" he mumbled and fell away from the bush, "that hur." he stopped mid-sentence. There in the bush lay the last thing he would have expected. "An elf!"  
  
The Ranger was confused and surprised. He'd heard of elves in Mirkwood, of course, but he didn't expect to see one so near the forest edge. He sighed and climbed over the thorns, picked up the elf and tried to climb back over without falling over, constantly catching his foot on tangled, thorny vines. He finally got out and carefully laid the elf on the ground. Checking to make sure he was alive, he wondered how the elf got himself into the middle of a thorn-bush, just to black out. He shook his head and checked the unconscious elf over. When he had finished, he'd pulled dozens of thorns out of his back and had discovered that he had broken his arm. Taking advantage of the elf's unconsciousness, he grasped the elf's thin arm and braced himself. He took a deep breath and pulled, setting it back where it belonged. Half awakening from the pain the elf winced and cried out, he breathed deeply for a little while before the pain slowly dragged him back into unconsciousness. The Ranger looked at the elf's pale face and he felt weird, almost the same feeling he had when he felt he was being followed a while before.  
  
- Of course! The elf must have been following in the trees, and when I ran, he must have fallen somehow. But why was he following him? - The Ranger shook his head in confusion and looked up into the trees, sure enough, there was an odd twisted branch in the tree that hung almost right over the thorn-bush.  
  
Slowly, the Ranger pulled out two blankets from his pack; secretly glad he had brought an extra. He threw one on the ground and draped the other over the elf. Then he built up a fire and ate his lunch, waiting for the fair being to regain consciousness. He toyed with the fire a bit, deep in thought when suddenly many things started to happen. The elf woke up slowly, but the Ranger was too deep in thought to notice. The being struggled to regain consciousness, and when he did, was surprised. and slightly angry. He sat for a minute and didn't move, realizing the human wasn't paying attention; he slowly rose on unsteady feet and, unsheathing his knife, crept around behind the human. The Ranger had actually fallen asleep right there, so tired after having next to no sleep the last three or four days on his hunt. a very deep sleep. The elf noiselessly snuck up behind the human and was about to put the small elven blade under the human's neck when he woke up. Sensing something wasn't right the Ranger woke up and, noticing the elf wasn't where he left him, jumped up and across the empty fire-pit, slapping his palm onto his forehead. Whirling around and unsheathing his sword he stopped. The elf was surprised, but not put off guard. This human wasn't as slow as he had expected, in fact, he could say that he was quite fast. Though not as fast as the elf, unfortunately, when the elf jumped forward unexpectedly and caught the Ranger in the stomach with his shoulder. Though, surprising the elf again, the human stumbled back a bit but did not fall. The elf lunged again but this time the Ranger was ready and he jumped aside. The elf tripped on a rock that was surrounding the fire-pit and tumbled forward. Closing his eyes the elf winced as his head swam and he realized that with him on the ground the human would have an advantage. Ready to hit the ground he swung his injured arm out to the side so as not to land on it, but he never hit the ground. He felt someone catch him and lay him gently onto a blanket.  
  
- Okay, when's the punishing going to start, - he thought, -this human's acting odd and he's probably planning some kind of cruel torture for me. -  
  
"Where did you think you were going?" The young human asked the elf, smiling.  
  
"What?!?!" The elf replied, surprised.  
  
"I asked you where you where going and I would like to know whom you are," the Ranger said smiling down at the elf on the ground.  
  
The elf studied him, "I was trying to get away from you human," he said, "and I'm an elf."  
  
"Well yeah, I know you're an elf but what's your name?" The Ranger replied, stifling a laugh at the elf on the ground, he was trying to hide his fear, and he was doing a good job, but looking into his eye's you could see it, "there's no need to be afraid."  
  
"My name is none of your business and I'm not afraid," the elf replied angrily.  
  
"Right," The Ranger replied, "okay, anyway, I'm Strider," he said slowly, deciding to use his nickname from Bree. He flopped down next to the elf and Strider could see him flinch.  
  
"That's your real name?" the elf asked with a low voice, trying to create something for the human to work on as he tried to move further away from him.  
  
"No," Strider laughed, "it's a nickname. and quit trying to move away. Here, let me see your arm."  
  
The elf jerked his arm away and moaned softly as the movement caused his arm to get sore again, "I'm fine."  
  
Strider laughed again, "I'm sorry if I'm mistaken, but when I find an elf in a thorn-bush with a broken arm and he's blacked out, I wouldn't call that fine. Oh, I want to ask you something," he added and looked at the elf. When the elf just looked back at him, he continued, "Were you following me?"  
  
The elf looked at him for a moment, "maybe."  
  
"I'm guessing I'm not going to get any more than maybe.right?" Strider asked.  
  
The elf just glared at him. Laughing, Strider carefully took the elf's arm and undid the bandage. The elf winced a bit but didn't pull away so he wouldn't hurt his arm. He brought a pot of water over and dumped in a handful of crushed leaves from his pocket. The scent quickly took over the camp and even the elf calmed a bit. The elf had gotten a long gash over his back where a particular thorn didn't want to let got of the vine for a while, but when it did, it got in deep. Gently rapping the bandage back around after he'd had a look, the Ranger gently turned the elf over and re-cleaned the gash with the water from the pot and taking some of the leaves from the water, pushed them carefully into the wound.  
  
- I'll bet they're poisonous, - the elf thought quickly, starting to get a bit more afraid, - he's probably pretending to be nice so that I wont suspect anything. I'm getting out of here as soon as he's asleep. -  
  
Strider slowly made the elf sit up and wrapped another bandage from an extra tunic in his pack around his back and stomach to cover the gash on his back and to keep the leaves from coming out before he needed them to. After that he rolled up what was left of the tunic and threw in on the ground for the elf to use as a pillow. Laying the elf back down, he went over and sat on his blanket, waiting for the elf to fall asleep. When he did fall asleep, Strider lay himself down and sighed, falling slowly into sleep.  
  
A couple hours later the elf's eyes blinked and looked over at the human. Realizing he was asleep, he slowly got out of his bed and walked off slowly, not able to climb with his broken arm. It was the rustling of leaves nearby that woke the Ranger. He woke quickly and looked over to where the elf had lain.  
  
- Of course, - Strider rolled his eyes and stood up, - I should have known. -  
  
Quickly following the sound he started tracking the elf. He knew elves weren't easy to track, but this one couldn't climb and with the slight limp from the awkward fall, he might be able to find some footprints in the few areas that were only dirt, or mainly dirt. All his senses on full alert, he looked around carefully, searching for broken branches, plants that looked awkward from being moved or kicked and footprints. He almost laughed, finding this one an easy elf to track, his limp showed slightly in some spots and Strider knew he wasn't far because he could still smell the athelas plant. He could hear the slight rustling of branches and leaves and after a while he started wondering if the elf was okay. He had started coming across blood spots and they were getting bigger and more frequent as he went. After a while it stopped but as he went it started slowly again. The Ranger did not find this odd though, a while back the prints changed and he knew that the elf was in bad shape because he couldn't walk anymore, he had taken to crawling, looking for a place to hide. As he went the prints started getting more clear, as if the elf had to struggle to make himself go faster, or just to keep going.  
  
Continuing on his way, Strider keep going until he found what he was looking for. Unfortunately, not in the way he wanted to see the elf. He had passed out again. Gently picking him up, and ignoring the blood that began to slowly run down the front of his dark overcoat, he started walking back to camp as quickly as possible. The elf was slowly regaining consciousness and he moaned at the pain his back was causing.  
  
"Shh," the Ranger said, "calm down, you're in no condition to take off like that. What were you thinking?"  
  
The elf just started to struggle, "put me down, I can walk."  
  
"Sure looked like it back there," Strider answered, "you say one thing, but all evidence points to the fact that you were crawling. Now stop struggling, I don't want to drop you."  
  
Surprised at the fact that the human didn't want to hurt him he stared for a minute then looked off into the direction they were going and started muttering to him-self.  
  
They went on for a while and when they got near the camp, the Ranger stopped.  
  
"Something's not right, listen."  
  
The elf stopped his muttering and listened for a minute, "yrch!" he said quietly, falling into his own speech.  
  
The Ranger nodded his head and carefully put the elf on the ground. The elf just sat there. They looked at each other for a minute and then Strider drew his sword and crept towards the sound, their camp, in other words. He sighed in relief when he saw the small orc party he'd been after. It wasn't a relief seeing orcs but it was better if there were only three of them and no more, they were small ones too. They seemed to be looking for their food because they were searching through their stuff but didn't take clothing and blankets. Strider was glad he'd hidden his pack before he left. He was also glad they weren't bright enough to think that humans could climb tree too. He climbed up the tree he put his pack in (which was right over the camp) and aiming for the bigger one, he pulled out a small hunting knife and threw it into his throat. The others, seeing their leader fall, started freaking out. Taking advantage of this, Strider jumped on the second, driving his sword down into its head. He pulled it out and chased after the last one, not willing to let it go to get reinforcements he jabbed it and buried all three in a hole that took him half an hour to dig. After that, he went back to get the elf, hoping he didn't take off again, not much hope there. 


	2. Chapter 2

~*~ Chapter 2 ~*~  
  
  
Strider sighed, good, the elf was still there. Then he laughed, it wasn't his choice, he had passed out again. Sobering quickly, he picked him up and lay him down on the ground, his head sideways on his makeshift pillow. That done, the Ranger started to pull the bandage off from around the elf's back. Silly thing, taking off in his condition. He cleaned the wound and replaced the blood-clotted leaves, and then he wrapped it back up. He turned the elf onto his back carefully and checked his arm. Sighing, Strider pulled his blanket up over the elf and sat down to eat. While he was eating, he thought, mainly about his home, it was something he did when he was away, almost a habit. He considered Rivendell to be his home. It was, in a way, he lived there since he was really young and considered his foster family his real family. He lived in the palace with Elrond and his sons, whom he considered his brothers, Elladan and Elrohir.  
  
The elf woke up while the Ranger was thinking. He glared at the human, he still didn't like him, though, he had to admit he was kind of happy he was there when he hurt himself, or else who knows what would have happened. He could have been stuck out here.  
  
He sighed softly and stared up into the trees, - Was this human going to let him go… or kill him? - He wondered, - I'll have to wait and find out, what else can I do? –  
  
Strider noticed the slightly scared look in the elf's eyes and laughed, which made the elf jump.

"You don't need to worry, it's not like I'm going to hurt you."  
  
- Well, that's better than torture, - the elf thought, - at least it'll be a quick death. -  
  
Seeing the fear in the elves eyes still there, the Ranger continued laughing. That confused the elf entirely.  
  
"I don't see what's so funny," the elf growled, trying his best to make his musical voice sound mean, "I know what your going to do to me so you can   
stop pretending to be nice."  
  
"What?" Strider stopped laughing, "what do you think I'm going to do to you?"  
  
The elf silenced him-self and glared at the human.  
  
"I'll tell you what," Strider said calmly, "you tell me your name, and I'll tell you what I'm going to do with you."  
  
"How do I know I can trust you?"  
  
"Well, you can't, you've got to take a chance," the Ranger answered happily, trying not to laugh again.  
  
The elf sighed and looked deep into the human's eyes, he saw no evil there, but… well you never know, if he was hiding it, he was hiding it well, 

"Okay, I… I guess so, but you first."  
  
Strider laughed, "I mean to kill you," he saw the freaked out look on the elf's face, "I'm just kidding, I mean to help you get better and get you   
home, wherever that may be."  
  
The elf glared at him. 

"That wasn't funny." He snapped.  
  
"I know, I'm sorry," the Ranger laughed, "I just couldn't help it."  
  
"Well, I'm not one to go back on my word," the elf said angrily, "my name is Legolas."  
  
"Okay," Strider smiled, "how are you feeling?"  
  
"Fine," he snapped shortly.  
  
Strider started laughing even harder, "You've got a major attitude problem."  
  
Legolas rolled his eyes angrily and looked in the other direction, "that's your opinion."  
  
Shaking his head and trying to stifle a laugh he said, "you hungry?"  
  
"No."  
  
"Okay, but when you are just tell me, I'm going to go and look for more Athelas leaves for you," Strider said, "I'm not going far and trust me, I'll   
know if you try to take off, so don't try it."

  
Legolas just rolled his eyes and nodded sharply. Strider looked at him for a moment, smiling, and then left. He didn't want to admit it but the human   
could move quickly without making much sound at all and he thought he was different from most humans. He wasn't as stupid, loud and slow as he   
thought all humans were. That Strider person was different.  
  
- Though he's got the weirdest sense of humor, - he thought, - I'm going to test his threat. -  
  
With that, the elf stood up slowly and walked towards the edge, when he reached it he looked back into the camp, an slight evil grin flashed on his face for a second, - sure, 'I'll know if you try to take off' yeah right. - With that he turned around and jumped, the human had somehow gotten right in front of him without him noticing! Strider had an evil smile on his face.

"Decided to test me huh?" He asked.  
  
Legolas looked at him, trying not to laugh at the funny look the Ranger was giving him. He quickly gave himself a mental slap, he wasn't supposed to like this human. He hated humans…no… he hates humans. Finally he gave the human a sneer and dropped himself back onto his blanket.  
  
"Good, now, will you let me get those Athelas leaves for you?" Strider asked.  
  
Legolas continued to look at the human blankly. Strider shook his head and headed back into the bush. Once he was gone Legolas couldn't help but give a quiet laugh. That made him mad at himself though and he just buried his face in the rolled up tunic.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"Finally," Strider sighed, he had been walking around for a while and had only just found the plant. He was starting to get worried about Legolas, it was getting late and he ended up going further from camp then he would have liked. He had also had a growing feeling that there was something evil nearby. He knew it wasn't the elf, he was annoyed, that was obvious, but not evil. The feeling just kept growing. The Ranger tore off a couple handfuls of the leaves and stuffed them in a pouch that he kept in the pocket of his overcoat. Suddenly he tensed, he had heard something. It wasn't orcs, but what it was, he didn't know, couldn't figure it out. Stuffing the pouch in his pocket, he ran as fast as he could go back to the camp. He stopped at the bushes that surrounded the campsite. Looking in, he saw the last thing he'd thought of.  
  
"Oh, no," he whispered, "I hope he's okay, stupid wargs."  
  
With that he drew his blade and sprang on top of the one that had just lunged at the elf, landing on it, he jabbed the blade down into the creatures' back. He pulled out his sword and stabbed another in the chest. He continued with this until finally, the rest of the pack fled, most of them were fine or injured, he actually didn't have to kill very many, five in total. He dragged them off to where he buried the orcs and left them there. Then he headed back to the camp and ran up to the elf, he had been scratched a couple times but that was it. The elf had been completely terrified, though he did not let it show and he felt completely defenseless, he dropped his knife when he tripped over the fire-pit and he couldn't use his bow with a broken arm. He was actually relieved when the human had jumped in, though he wouldn't say anything.  
  
"Are you alright?" Strider asked when he came back.  
  
"Fine," Legolas responded.  
  
"Let me check your back again," the Ranger said before carefully helping the elf onto his stomach. He separated the bandages and cleaned up the wounds a bit, then smiled, "good, that deep one finally stopped bleeding."  
  
The elf just shrugged and rolled onto his back again. The Ranger stretched out on his blanket and yawned. In a few minutes they both fell asleep.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"Hungry?" The Ranger asked when Legolas woke up.  
  
The elf simply stared. Strider shook his head.  
  
"Come on, you've got to eat something," he said, passing him the half-empty water flask and an apple.  
  
Legolas didn't want to admit it, but he was hungry so he ate and when they were done, he stood up and walked around the campsite a couple of times.  
  
"Okay," the Ranger started, "I think it's about time we got you home."  
  
Legolas shrugged, but he knew that his father would want him back home.  
  
Strider laughed, "Fine, but if not for you, we'll do it for me, my father and brothers are going to start worrying if I'm not home soon."  
  
Legolas gave him a slight smile for a second, then realizing what he did scowled at the human and turned away. Strider, though, found this quit amusing and began laughing at the elf.  
  
"Oh, what's so funny?" Legolas asked angrily.  
  
"Well, if you must know," the Ranger started, laughing, "you."  
  
Legolas looked back at him, still glaring.  
  
"Especially that look!" not able to hold it back any longer, the young dúnadan burst out laughing.  
  
Legolas stopped glaring, now he was just plain confused, "How is being glared at funny?"

"It's not that, it's just the way you look when you glare at me," he laughed, "too bad you can't see it."  
  
"Okay," the elf said, "stop it! You're starting to make me laugh."  
  
"Good," he answered, "you need it."  
  
Legolas gave him a plainly annoyed look and he looked as if he could push the human to the ground and hold him there. 

-No, what's the point? – He thought, - he'd just keep laughing. –  
  
Taking a deep breath the Ranger stopped and walked over to Legolas, 

"Come on, let's go, I'm a ways from home and if I don't hurry I'm going to get into trouble."  
  
The elf just snorted, "good."  
  
"You know," Strider said, "that wasn't nice."

  
Legolas glanced over at him, "you know, I do know my way home, you can leave."  
  
"I could," the Ranger said thoughtfully, "but then I wouldn't get to bug you"

"Why would you want to?" Legolas asked.  
  
"To pay you back for following me."  
  
"How did you know about that?"  
  
"Well, one, because I had a feeling I was being watched and then I found you," he grinned wickedly, "and two, because you just admitted it."  
  
  
  
  
  
  
So what do ya' think? Please R&R!  
  
  
**  
Ayva Trance- Thanks for the review! Enjoy and review again please! I will continue... as soon as this is up.  
  
  
  
MicroChips- Thanks for your help with posting!  
  
  
  
Daemon Woman- No offence, but I think you need to lighten up. This is my first fic and I'm not great at writing but I try... Maybe I should have put   
it, he's almost 21 so that helps a bit. I write ahead of myself and I'm already on the third book. Then I'll explain a few more things that seem   
odd here. Such as the Legolas hating mortals and orc thing and following them. But don't forget that at these times, those orcs may not pose a   
threat to Rivendell physically at the time but they will if they came back with more if they were under the influence of some evil guy such as Saruman.   
I'll admit, I'm not good at writing from an elf's viewpoint but I try. Anyhow, you do have to lighten up a bit, I've only just read the book a while ago and I admit that I'm no expert on it but... well... just try pointing out things you like instead okay? I AM trying my best, even if I'm not great at writing, I'm having fun and that's all that really matters to me... well, I'd like to please the reviewers as well but it's impossible to please everyone, right? If you don't like it, than don't read it, go find one that suites you.  
  
  
  
leggylover03- Will he take Legolas home? Okay, well, 1) he's not a dog and 2) you'll have to wait and find out! *grins wickedly*  
  
  
  
feanen- WOW! It's interesting! Thank you! I'm glad it's interesting. :)  
  
  
  
Queen-of-Gondor- YES! Another interested reviewer! Glad!**  
  
  
  
Oh, and none of this is mine, though I wish it was... I'm just borrowing them so that I have someone other than my sisters to torture. :)  
  
  
  
One more thing... any mistakes are my own, so don't go blaming other peoplez. ;)

  
Thanx 4 da' reviews!!!!!!!!!!!  



	3. Chapter 3

~*~ Chapter 3 ~*~  
  
  
The two continued arguing for some time, until they were deep within the forest. Legolas stopped and thought for a moment, then turned to his right and kept going with the Ranger close behind. After a while the silence was beginning to bug them both.  
  
"So," Legolas started, trying to think of something to ask, "um… well."  
  
"What?" Strider asked, finding the elf's loss of words quite amusing.  
  
Legolas thought for a minute then asked, "Where do you live?" It sounded stupid but he couldn't stand the silence anymore.  
  
"In Rivendell," the human answered calmly, wondering if the elf could think of any better questions than that.  
  
"Rivendell?!?!" Legolas said, surprised by the humans answer, "no really, where?"  
  
"Rivendell."  
  
Legolas stared, "really?! I thought only elves lived there."  
  
"Huh? Oh, yeah they do," Strider answered, thinking it was a better question then he first thought, "I was… adopted."  
  
"By elves?!" the elf still couldn't believe it.  
  
"Yup," he answered back, enjoying the elf's confusion, "by Elrond."  
  
"What?!" he stared incredulously, "are you kidding me?" He added suspiciously.  
  
"No."  
  
Legolas continued forward, thinking this over… Elrond? For Elrond to adopt a human, he must be different. He shrugged, trying to think of a different question, "You haven't been here before, or at least you haven't been to my home."  
  
"No, but how did you know?"  
  
"I'd know if someone were in there," he answered, now he was enjoying the humans confusion, "I'm the prince," he added casually.  
  
"Now it's my turn to ask if you're kidding me," Strider said, guessing what the answer would be, no one would joke about that kind of thing. There was no guilty look in the 'princes' eyes.  
  
"Seriously."  
  
"Must be pretty strict and mean to new people if your dad is anyone like you," the Ranger said.  
  
That got him a glare from the elf, but this one wasn't funny, "We haven't got a liking for humans."  
  
"Right," Strider answered.  
  
After a while the elf lightened up a bit, "So who trained you, you've got good fighting skills and how'd you get that good, it's next to impossible to just learn talent like that."  
  
"Well, my father and brothers, they help me with stuff, but it mainly comes naturally," Strider answered.  
  
"Are you a Ranger?" The elf asked after a minute.  
  
"Yes," he answered, then smiled, "how'd you guess?"  
  
"Well, no normal human can move so quietly, and I'll admit your tracking skills are pretty good."  
  
"Well, hey, just 'pretty good'?" he asked with a grin, "you haven't seen me in action… you're just one of those little things you run into along your journey. And thank you for the compliments."  
  
The prince flushed angrily, realizing he'd complimented the human and because of what he said. 

"Thanks," he said flatly.  
  
"You should be thankful, if it weren't for me, you'd probably still be in that thorn-bush," he said with an evil smile.  
  
"If it weren't for you I wouldn't have fallen in the first place," he answered.  
  
"Maybe," he said, pretending to be thoughtful, "anyway, how much further is it?"  
  
"Not too far, ten maybe fifteen minutes."  
  
The Ranger nodded slowly, "Okay, let's go."  
  
"You mean your not leaving?" Legolas asked.  
  
"We're not there yet, and I'm going to bother you as much as I can," he said, "how's your back and arm?"  
  
"They're fine," he hesitated when they Ranger gave him a look.  
  
"Then why did you hesitate?" Strider asked, "Let me see your back."  
  
Legolas sighed, "Fine," he lifted the back of his tunic and Strider unwound the cloth and took the leaves out of the wound. 

"It looks fine but we can't have these healing into the wound," he laughed, waving the crushed leaves in his face and burying them in a small hole. 

"So animals can't smell the blood," he explained when Legolas gave him an inquiring look. He quickly wound the wrap back around him and pulled down the back of the elf's tunic.  
  
"I'll give you a new one if you want when we get closer," he said, "just don't want to pull stuff out of my pack right now."  
  
Legolas nodded and walked on ahead. - I have to admit, even if I don't want to that the human is more caring than I would have thought, he'd probably do anything for a friend, - he thought, remembering what had happened with the wargs, a normal human would have left him and run off.  
  
"What are you thinking about?" Strider asked, interrupting the elf prince's thoughts.  
  
"What? Oh, uh, nothing," Legolas jumped and faltered at the sound of the Rangers voice.  
  
"Right," Strider laughed, "of course it's nothing. Come on, tell me, I know something's up, it's next to impossible to make an elf jump."  
  
"Really, I…it's nothing," the elf stumbled through his words.  
  
"Really?" The Ranger smiled and raised his right eyebrow.  
  
Legolas glared at Strider, which caused him to start laughing, and, much to his surprise, the elf started laughing too. Clearing his throat, Legolas,   
for the first time (not including the time he didn't mean to) smiled at the Ranger.  
  
"Hey, isn't that a gate?" Strider asked suddenly.  
  
"Yeah, this is it, my home," Legolas answered, "so I guess you'd better go to your home before your 'father' sends out every soldier he can get."  
  
Strider laughed again, "yeah, your probably right."  
  
They said bye and as the Ranger turned as Legolas walked out of sight, he was jumped on. Twenty to thirty elven soldiers stood around him, one with a   
knife under his chin.  
  
"You'd better come without fuss, human," the soldier with the knife spat the last word in Strider's face.  
  
"Okay," he said, then with out warning, flipped the elf over his head and drew his sword. With that, the other elves closed in on him, drawing hidden blades, some un-slinging bows from their backs. With about fifteen arrows pointed at him, the Ranger re-sheathed his blade and put his hands above his head to show he was surrendering.  
  
- I can't believe I'm surrendering, but it's not like I have a choice, - he thought, looking around him, - now, where did this come from? -  
  
"Come on now," a second one said, "let's get moving, now."  
  
"Okay," the Ranger jerked his arm away from the elf, "I'll come easier if you don't touch me."  
  
The Ranger walked angrily between a few of the elves. He didn't understand what was going on. He felt like asking what was going on, in a way. The human part, the normal part, wanted to know what was up, wanted to ask. On the other hand, the Ranger part, his instincts, told him to stay quiet and wait it out. In the end, as usual, his fears were all overcome by his instinct. The fact that he didn't want them to know his fear, made him swallow it and appear fine, just nnoyed, yet inside, he was worried.  
  
- If they saw me with their prince, why would they take me in? – He wondered, - this is making no sense… unless Legolas set me up… but I know that's not right… I hope. -  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"This is it, human," the first elf said, "in you go."  
  
They had made it into the elves prison but they were having trouble getting the human into his cell. He had given them his sword easily enough, but he was unwilling to go into the cell. When backup came he walked right in, realizing it was one-sided, on their side. He sat back and scowled at them as they closed the door.  
  
"Well," he whispered to himself, "this should be fun." He smiled. Standing up he walked to the door and looked out through the small peephole, you might call it, and waited until the guards were well on their way to the doors.  
  
"Didn't expect trouble from the inside, did you," he said quietly, "I thought elves were smarter than you, didn't even take my overcoat, checked it, but didn't take it." Putting his hand into his side pocket, he pulled out a small pin, looking through the small hole in the door he realized if he went fast, he could maybe reach the lock and pick it open.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"That is the last time you are put in there with out getting hurt even worse," one of the guards said. They couldn't figure out how the human kept getting out, but it had happened five times in the last week and they were getting sick of it. When he was first put in, he met up with the King, he was asked a few questions… none of which he answered. Strider was a stubborn one, no matter how many times he failed, he kept trying. Pulling out the pin again, he picked the lock open and crept down the corridor. He stopped at the first corner; he'd found out the hard way that they stood there. Taking a deep breath he jumped around the corner and punched the first one in the face. He almost felt sorry for them, they were only doing their job, but he had to get back home. He punched the second in the stomach making him double over. There, two, now to the next corner. Suddenly, he had another elf in front of him and a fist in the face. Not expecting another one, he fell back with a cry. Shaking his head he brought his foot behind the elf and tripped him backwards. He quickly ran over to the next corner, taking another deep breath, he jumped around and took out the first in one hit, same with the second, but not without a scratch running up his arm, obviously they heard his cry and were ready for him. He got around five corners, all of them.  
  
- Finally! – He thought, - it only took me five tries. -  
  
He carefully stepped out into the light, he had blood running all down his arms and face, mainly from one particularly large gash he got from that first punch in the face. Blinded by the sudden light, he stepped back and felt strong hands grab him.  
  
"Okay, we've been expecting you, come on, it's time for your trial," a deep voice said.  
  
"M-my trial?" He asked, trying to shield his eyes.  
  
"Yes, including the hurt of the guards, I'd say you were looking at…   
say…two hundred years."  
  
"Two hundred years!?!?!?!?" He yelped, "humans don't even live that long!"  
  
"Well that's not my problem," the elf answered and led him next door into   
the palace.  


****

majorlakerfan22- thanx 4 da' review and yes, ya' gotta luv humor. :)  
  
  
Sky12- Yes, searching can be a drag... I know when I was looking 4 RITS...,   
and, Kat? You scare me...

  
**Lomiothiel- Thank u soooooooooo much!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! You make me happy, Daeman totally brought down my spirits but u brought um back up! Thanx! I'm glad u like it so much! And picky people bug me too... I think ur my fav. reviewer!!!!!!!! (No offence to the others... you're in a close   
2nd...) :)  
  
Thank u MicroChips, my Editor/Beta Reader for the help, wit' out u I wouldn't have anything up! (Ur a fav. too :)) Thanx 4 postin' 4 me!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :)  
  
Oracle10-Thanx 4 the review, I'm liking the NICE ones for that last chapter.   
:)  
  
leggylover03-Thanx 4 continuing to review, means a lot to me.  
  
feanen-Thanx to u as well 4 continuing... still interesting!!!!!!!!!!!!   
Yay!!!!!!!!!! *dances around the room* :)  
  
Still not mine (unfortunetly) :'(but I can borrow them... ARAGORN'S   
MINE!!!!!!!!!!!! (At least I want him to be)  
  
Sorry 4 taking' so long, let's just say my computer is still being mean and   
my friend 4got to post 4 me. :)  
  
R/R!!!!!!!!!!!!! PWEASE?????????????????????????????????? *makes puppy-dog   
eyes***

__

A quick note from the editor: Sorry for taking so long with the last one guys! I promise from now on I'll be faster! Sorry about that mistake… my computer saved it twice so I clicked the wrong one… grrr…. Next one up soon!


	4. Chapter 4

~*~ Chapter 4 ~*~  
  
  
"Sit down," the elven guard pushed the Ranger into a chair.  
  
"I could have done that myself," he muttered, trying to soak up the blood running down his face with the sleeve of his overcoat.  
  
At that moment the King came in, followed by two guards and, who else, but Legolas. When the prince looked over to where their new prisoner should be   
he jumped.  
  
- What? – He thought, - why is he here? - The elf glanced between the Ranger and his father, not knowing what to do.  
  
"State your name," the King said sternly, "and why you are here."  
  
"My name," Strider started, "is Aragorn, and I do not know why I am here, if you mean your courtroom, if you mean in Mirkwood, I was merely exploring   
the land, I did not know I was trespassing."  
  
"What is he charged with," the King asked the guard that had dragged the human here.  
  
"He is charged with trespassing and the assault of our guards," the elf replied.  
  
Aragorn nearly smiled at this, but held back giving Legolas a venomous glare that made the elf flinch. The prince dropped his gaze to the floor, he knew that humans weren't allowed near here, but he'd completely forgotten. As much as he hated him before, he hated to see him hurt so badly now. He thought a while and before he knew it, the Ranger had already been sentenced. Being human, the sentence was cut in half, but that was still one hundred years. The Ranger dropped his gaze to the ground and nodded when he heard his sentence. Before Legolas could say anything, the human was already being dragged out of the room. Still in shock, he turned to his father.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"I wish to see the new prisoner," Aragorn's sharp hearing heard the elves speaking at the door. A couple moments later he heard soft footsteps just outside his door. He fell back into the corner and pulled his overcoat over his face, not wanting to see the one whom he felt had betrayed him.  
  
"I wish to see him alone," Legolas said, "give me the keys."  
  
A second later, Legolas opened the door and shut it behind him. He turned his gaze on the man in the corner.  
  
"What do you want now?" the Ranger's voice whispered angrily.  
  
Legolas looked at him a moment and knelt beside him, Strider moved further   
away.  
  
"I'm sorry," the elf whispered bringing his hand to the human's throat. Aragorn tensed and tried to pull away, scowling at the elf. Delivering slight pressure to a certain point on the human's throat he held him still while the human slowly blacked out. The elf did not get away from this unharmed however; he got himself a firm, strong punch in the face first. Rubbing his face he pulled the overcoat off the human and threw it on his chest, slightly bunched up so as to hide the movement of the Rangers chest. The elf lifted the human gently and walked out the door with him, the human's weight distributed on his good arm and shoulder.  
  
"He died," Legolas said simply. The guards looked at the Ranger's limp body for a moment and nodded. Legolas passed through the prison and out to the door guards. He explained that he was going to go and bury the body near the edge of the forest. Once that was done, he went quickly out into the forest and ran as fast as he could through the forest.  
  
In a few hours, the elven prince had found their last campsite and lay the Ranger down on the ground, flinging his overcoat on top of him. The elf fell fast asleep within half an hour as the sky darkened.  
  
Rising slowly, the Ranger blinked, not believing his eyes. He was in the forest, and seemed to be in the same campsite that he and the elf were in a week and a half ago. He glowered at the elf lying by the burnt out fire-pit. Annoyed as he was with the elf, he couldn't help wondering why he brought him out here. Looking into the elf's half open eyes, he realized Legolas was asleep. Moving quietly, he walked out of the camp, he did not intend to stay here and he began to head home. Realizing that the elf could wake any minute, he continued his quiet escape, brushing all his tracks away behind him with a pine branch. As daylight began to filter through the trees, he began moving faster, knowing that the elf was probably awake by now.  
  
"Where did that human go?" Legolas muttered to himself darkly. He had moved all around the camp carefully looking for the human but had found no sign of him, "How could he get out of here without leaving a single mark or sign or… something!" the elf threw his arms in the air, "I am about to give up. I'll head west, if the human does live in Rivendell, then he'll be heading that way," Legolas turned to face west and made his way out of the camp, making sure that everything was covered up.  
  
Legolas sighed. He'd been walking for almost an hour and this was only the second sign he'd found, the first was a pine needle trail and slight scratches in the dirt that came from the needles being dragged. Now he found the branch the Ranger had been using to hide his tracks. At least he knew he was going the right way.  
  
Aragorn paused; he could swear he heard someone. Quietly jumping into the bush on his right, he got ready to run out if anyone found him. His weapons   
were all taken when he was taken prisoner. During his long walk, his head had begun to swim. The injury to his forehead had begun to bleed again and all he could do was tear off a piece of his blanket and wrap it tightly around his forehead. But he hadn't done it soon enough and the blood loss was beginning to make him light-headed. Nothing seemed steady to the Ranger and he was glad to have an opportunity to sit down for a moment. A couple seconds later, the elf walked up next to the bush the Ranger was hiding next to. When he stopped the Ranger winced, knowing he could probably hear his deep, shallow, unsteady breathing. The elf turned and started searching through the bushes, looking for the human he knew wasn't far. Strider crawled under the bush and came out on the other side. While the elf was searching the other side, he climbed up the nearest tree. He pulled himself up onto the first branch and quickly but quietly moved up a ways so that the leaves hid him. Then the elf turned and looked through the bushes beneath the Ranger. He couldn't help but smile when he saw the elf's confused look, but that caused his head to spin, which caused him to moan. Quickly realizing his mistake he rolled his eyes, which didn't help the dizzy   
feeling. At the sound of the moan, the elf started and looked up. The elf walked towards the tree and was just about to climb up when two other elves came towards him. At the sound of their voices, Aragorn jumped and looked down at them happily.  
  
"Legolas?!" the first one said, "we didn't expect to see you here."  
  
"We were on our way to see you," the second said, "we've been… looking for someone."  
  
"Oh?" Legolas asked, "who does this someone look like?"  
  
"Well, um," the second stuttered, "he's uh…"  
  
The first sighed and shook his head, "he's a human. He was sent out to get rid of three or four orcs to make sure they did not come back to Rivendell with more, but he has not come back and it's been just over two weeks now."  
  
"A human huh?" the elven prince couldn't hold back his smile.  
  
Aragorn almost sighed in relief, if his brothers trusted the elf he could too, he smiled mischievously, but he decided to listen and find out where this would lead.  
  
"Yes, a human," Elladan said, "have you seen him?"  
  
"Well," Legolas said, "I have seen a human, if he was the one you're looking for, I do not know, what is his name?"  
  
"His name is Estel," Elrohir said, "… what happened to your arm!?"  
  
"What? Oh, I was following the human and I… fell out of a tree," the prince muttered the last part quietly in an annoyed tone.  
  
"You fell out of a tree?" Elrohir said, "I can't believe… ouch!" he said when his brother elbowed him in the side.  
  
"Have you seen the human?" Elladan asked, "we need to bring him home, father is getting worried."  
  
"Home?" the prince raised an eyebrow.  
  
"Yes, he's our adopted brother."  
  
"Oh, so it was the same human," he said.  
  
"You saw him?" Elrohir blurted out hopefully, "do you know where he is?"  
  
"Well, yes, I was tracking him here," Legolas said.  
  
"Tracking?" Elladan asked skeptically.  
  
"It's a long story, here, sit down and I'll tell you."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Elladan was almost laughing, "So, you were tracking him and got hurt, he helped you, somehow was taken into your prison and you didn't know until his   
trial…"  
  
"Where he was sentenced to one hundred years. Then you helped him get out and he ran off," Elrohir finished, then burst out laughing. When he finally stopped he asked, "So where is he now?"  
  
Legolas opened his mouth to speak but was cut off by a voice above him, which made them all jump.  
  
"Yeah, sure Legolas, but, you forgot to tell them that when I helped you, you tried to kill me and then caused me to black out by choking me to carry me out of your prison," Aragorn said, starting to laugh.  
  
"Estel! There you are!" Elladan jumped to his feet, "fathers been worried   
about you."  
  
"Legolas, you tried to kill him?" Elrohir almost found this funny.  
  
The elf prince turned red in the face and turned away. Strider jumped out of the tree and landed in between them.  
  
"Hello Legolas," he laughed.  
  
"Hi," the elf muttered back. He'd thought there was something different about this human, now he knew. The human lived with elves, he acted kind of like them too, which would be why he hid in the tree instead of staying on the ground, as well as being quieter and stealthier than other humans, that and the fact that he was a Ranger explained it all quite well.  
  
"Come on," Elladan said suddenly, "we should go explain what happened to your father Legolas."  
  
The other three nodded and headed back towards the palace, laughing and talking.  
  
"You know, Estel, we're going to have to hurt you for taking off," Elrohir smiled evilly at the human.  
  
"If you think you can…" Aragorn smiled cruelly.  
  
"Ooo," Legolas started, "you'd better watch yourself Elrohir, the human will hurt you," he laughed.  
  
"You'd better watch yourself," Strider said and pushed the elf forward.  
  
Legolas faked the human, pretending to fall, he caught himself on his hands and spun around gracefully, tripping the human and causing him to fall forward. Elladan caught the Ranger and laughed.  
  
"You'd better watch yourself little brother," Elrohir smirked, "you're not   
as tough as you think you are."  
  
"I'm going to make you eat those words!" the Ranger laughed and started chasing after his brother. The elf was faster and Aragorn knew that, so he used the elfs speed against him. After a while the Ranger stopped and hopped quietly into a bush beside him and waited, knowing it wouldn't take long for his elven brother to realize he wasn't following. Sure enough, a couple minutes later the elf walked back his way, calling for him. As he walked by, Strider put out his leg and tripped him. The elf, startled, fell forwards and stopped himself just above the ground with his arms. He sighed and lowered himself to the ground, trying not to smile.  
  
"You know," Aragorn said, jumping out of the bush, "I said I'd make you eat your words, but, I kind of like watching you eat dirt more," he grinned wickedly and put his foot on his brother's back. At that second, he was jerked back and a long elven knife placed under his throat.  
  
"What are you doing?" the elf whispered fiercely.  
  
  
  
  
  
Lomiothiel- I know it got messed... sry 4 makin' ya' wait! Will post faster!  
  
feanen- Thanx, glad ya' still like it. :)  
  
leggylover03- sry to make ya' im... wait... that is sooooooooooo not my fault!!!!!!!! *grins*  
  
Elanor8- nope, will not make ya' wait long. :) Glad ya' love it!  
  
LalaithoftheBruinen- Glad ya' enjoy it and glad that it's excellent! Unfortunetly, yes the 3nd ch. was posted twice, wasn't my fault! *mock glares at the editor who posts for her 'cause her com. is evil.* THANK U 4 DA' HUGS AND BUNNIES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! *Huggles bunnies*  


Bunnies: Help!  
  
Lita of Jupiter- Me knows, me fixes... thank u 4 da' review!

**__**

Editors Note: Well, Elven Kitten and myself responded to your pleas for speed. Sorry bout that mistake again. I hope the speed for this one made up for it!  
  



	5. Chapter 5

~*~ Chapter 5 ~*~  
  
Aragorn gulped, what just happened? The knife slipped up a ways up starting to cut into his skin. His brother was unaware at what just happened and lay there on the ground, trying not to laugh… still.  
  
"E-Elrohir…" the Ranger's voice faltered.  
  
"Shut up human," the elf whispered fiercely, and then repeated his question, "what were you trying to do to him?" He nodded down towards the elf that stiffened at his brother's voice and the other elf's. He didn't dare move, in case something happened. Shaking his head he thought for a moment then slowly turned around to see the elf holding his brother.  
  
"Raenan?" At this the elf with the knife froze and looked towards the voice.  
  
"Legolas? Are you all right? I've been looking everywhere for you when I found this thing harassing this elf." He nodded towards Elrohir.  
  
"Um, actually he wasn't harassing me," Elrohir almost laughed, "I tripped… sort of."  
  
"You tripped?" Elladan asked, smiling cruelly, "don't think I'll forget this."  
  
Legolas laughed, "Okay, that's enough. Raenan put the human down."  
  
At that, Raenan dropped Aragorn and sheathed his blade, never taking his eyes off the human that now crouched down next to the elf on the ground.  
  
Aragorn took hold of Elrohir's hand and started pulling him up… which was a bad idea because as soon as he did, the elf pulled down and brought the human to the ground next to him. In the next second Elrohir was on his feet, laughing at the human on the ground.  
  
"Now who's eating dirt," he asked, grinning wickedly.  
  
Elladan helped his brother off the ground as Legolas explained what had happened to the new elf.  
  
"So you're heading towards the palace to talk to King Thranduil?" Raenan asked.  
  
"Yes, we have to explain all this to him," Elladan broke in.  
  
"Okay then, let us be going," the small elf answered. He turned and began walking through the forest towards the palace. They all followed him quickly.  
  
"So, why were you captured in the first place?" Raenan asked.  
  
"To tell you the truth I don't know," the young human answered.  
  
"Oh," the short elf just gazed ahead of him.  
  
In an hour, they had all reached the palace and quickly entered. Legolas led the way to the main room and walked in.  
  
"Father, there are some here who wish to speak with you," he said matter-of-factly.  


"Ah, well, show them in."  
  
Legolas quickly brought in the two elves and the human. King Thranduil was not incredibly pleased to see the human but listened to the two elves.  
  
"So you see, sire, that the human was adopted by my father, Elrond and he was sent to take care of a few orcs that had managed to escape our realm alive," Elladan finished after a few moments.  
  
The king sighed and slowly nodded, "Very well, the human may go."  
  
"Thank you sire," Elrohir said.  
  
"I will have my son escort you out of the forest," he replied, then stood and walked towards his room.  
  
Legolas nodded at them and smiled, "Okay, let's go then."  
  
The rest nodded and followed him out to the forest edge. Before they left, they made sure they had enough food and then marched out into the forest. Legolas still did not completely trust the human; at least he no longer felt threatened by him.  
  
Once they were in the forest, Legolas could tell the human was used to being out in areas such as these. He was able to pick his way through the trees and over hills and streams almost as easy as if he were an elf. He'd never noticed before, what with himself or the human trying to escape each other all the time.  
  
Aragorn had been able to keep up with the swift-moving elves… though it was not easy. When they finally settled down for the night, the Ranger was quite relieved. Almost as soon as he lied down, he had fallen asleep. A couple minutes after he had fallen asleep, Elladan was next to him, cleaning up his small wounds and stitching up the gash over his right eye. He put a bandage around his head carefully and tied it tightly on the side so that it covered the stitching. Elrohir was next to him and held his head up gently as they did this and then helped finishing with the small cuts and scrapes. Legolas smiled, despite the fact that it was a human; the twins cared for him like a brother. He thought it was quite amazing that an elf could take to a human that way.  
  
- That human has an awful lot of names, - he laughed slightly, - well, he had three at least. -  
  
"**Sut ro**?" he asked quietly in elvish. //How is he? //  
  
"**Ro tereva, ro anta esta, ro ha n'uma en'bela**" Elrohir laughed. // He is fine, he needs rest, he has (I think, not sure ^) no energy, //  
  
"**Ro uma quel**," Legolas answered. //He did well, //  
  
Elladan smiled at the young man by his side. It is true, Estel does much better than most humans would, it was probably the Ranger in him. Though growing up with elves probably helped him a lot.  
  
"We should take turns watching tonight," Elladan suggested, "just in case."  
  
"That's a good idea," his younger twin answered, Legolas nodded.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
The night was uneventful and when Estel woke up, he found it was still early and all but the watcher were sleeping. It was Legolas' turn and he stared straight out into the woods, not appearing to do much but was listening intently to his surroundings. The elf smiled when the human woke up.  
  
-Awake already? - he thought, -even Elladan and Elrohir aren't up yet. -  
  
The human watched the elf for a moment. Legolas had his bow in his hand and his quiver within easy reach if needed. Aragorn glanced over to where his own bow lay. He had become good at fletching arrows but even though he had a good bow and good arrows, he wasn't very good at archery.  
  
-Maybe he'd be willing to help me out, - he thought, -might as well ask… what have I got to lose? –  
  
With that, the human got up and, grabbing his bow and arrows, walked over towards the elf.  
  
"**Mani uma ro irma sii'?**" Legolas said aloud when the human sat a little ways away from him, not thinking that since he lived in Rivendell he would know elvish. //What does he want now? //  
  
Aragorn put on his most hurt expression, and, trying not to laugh, said, "**Quel amin nae noi' wanwai a' lit lle a' anta amin yassen amin cuari**." // Well I was only (I think) going to ask (?) you to help me with my archery.   
//  
  
Legolas jumped and stared for a second, -well duh! He lives in Rivendell, - he mentally slapped himself, "how do you know I'm any good at archery?"  
  
"Well," the human stated, "I for one wouldn't bring a weapon with me to guard if I wasn't good at using it."  
  
"True," the elf nearly smiled at the human's sureness, "I suppose I could help you."  
  
In an hour, the Ranger was able to shoot and hit small targets easily without any help. He had been okay at it before, which helped now and that combined with the fact that he was a fast learner, helped him be able to do so well in so little time. Even Legolas was impressed at how fast the human could learn. By the time the human's brothers were up, he could shoot an arrow as well as they could.  
  
"How was that?" Aragorn grinned when he hit the target they had marked on a tree with ash from their fire dead on.  
  
"Great!" Legolas was still surprised at how quickly the human could learn.  
  
"How DID you manage that?" Elrohir asked after standing up in surprise when he saw his little brother shoot the target perfectly.  
  
"What he said," Elladan smiled wickedly.  
  
Aragorn gave his brother's a hurt look, "What? Did you not think me capable of it?"  
  
Elrohir adopted his brother's wicked grin, "Actually no."  
  
"I think it was a fluke and we just woke up at the right time," Elladan said cruelly.  
  
At that, Aragorn turned and notched another arrow to his bow then drew, lined it up so that the arrow was pointed just above the target and released. He turned and made a face at his brothers as the arrow hit the target dead center. 

"Now what was that you were saying?" the Ranger grinned.  
  
The twins turned bemused glares at the Prince of Mirkwood who snickered at the two. 

"What?" he asked, still trying to stifle his laughs, "it's not every day you get to see the twins of Elrond proven wrong."  
  
"Yeah? Well if I… we…" Elrohir corrected himself, "have anything to do with it, you never will again."  
  
"Come on you guys, let's go," Aragorn said laughing, trying to stop any further arguments, he normally would have found this great and would have usually joined in… but at the moment, he just wanted to get to the castle and get it over with.  
  
Legolas shook his head and stifled a laugh, "He's right, we should get going."  
  
Elrohir smiled, "We should get there in a couple hours if we hurry."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Aragorn smiled slightly, "Well, this is goodbye."  
  
Legolas nodded. They had reached the edge of the forest and that was as far as he was going to go. He never thought he'd ever see any human as a friend, but that was the way he was beginning to see this one. Just beginning. He wasn't sure if he'd ever even see the human again.  
  
"Well, we'd better get home before father sends out someone to find us," Elladan said, "let's go."  
  
"Yes, goodbye," Elrohir said.  
  
"Goodbye, my friends," Legolas said.  
  
With that the three turned and walked off. Legolas waved until they were out of sight.  
  
"Well that's it," he sighed. He shook his head and turned to go home.  
  
- I can't help but wonder if I'll ever see them again, - he thought, then shook his head again and sighed, - probably not. -  
  
"Legolas!" Raenan suddenly appeared from out of the trees, "King Thranduil sent me to get you."  
  
Legolas looked at him, he was mounted on his charcoal gray horse and was holding Legolas' white Stallion. The prince smiled at the smaller elf and turned his horse around heading back into the trees silently.  
  
  
_The End_  
  
  
  
  
  
**LalaithoftheBruinen- I'm gald ya' like it! Really!  
Bunnies: *under bed*  
Bunny #1: is she gone yet?  
Bunny #2: *peeks out from under bed to get snagged by me* *squeaks* Nope!  
EK: Hehehehe, my initials are E.K... hehe ek... *giggles and huggles   
suffocating bunny* oops...  
:)  
  
Agent Of Darkness- I'll keep that in mind! Thanks 4 continuing to post 4 me! 'Tis greatly appreatiated! I'll slow it down... in like my 3rd book :) I'm on the 3rd ch. of the 3rd book already... been slowing down in my writting but I've picked it up again... :)  
  
feanen- good, no more interesting????????? *eyes get big than bursts out laughing* It's good now tho!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :):):)  
  
mascara freak- I'm glad it's great! I'm real glad ya' think it's well written! :)  
  
Look out 4 sequel... I'm really bad at names but 4 now it's called 'Hello Again' will be posted soon!  
  
...Poor grasshopper... wha? oh... enjoy!**  



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